Perceived indoor air quality and its relationship to air pollutants in French dwellings

Abstract

Perception of indoor air quality (PIAQ) was evaluated in a nationwide survey of 567 French dwellings, and this survey was combined with measurements of gaseous and particulate matter (PM and PM ) indoor air pollutants and indoor climate parameters. The perception was assessed on a nine-grade scale by both the occupants of the dwellings and the inspectors who performed the measurements. The occupants perceived the air quality in their homes as more pleasant than the inspectors. The inspectors perceived the air quality as more unpleasant in dwellings in which the residents smoked indoors. Significant associations between PIAQ and indoor air pollutant concentrations were observed for both the inspectors and, to a lesser extent, the occupants. Introducing confounding parameters, such as building and personal characteristics, into a multivariate model suppressed most of the observed bivariate correlations and identified the tenure status of the occupants and their occupation as the parameters that most influenced their PIAQ. For the inspectors, perceived air quality was affected by the presence of smokers, the season, the type of ventilation, retrofitting, and the concentrations of acetaldehyde and acrolein.

Indoor Air Quality in Buildings: A Comprehensive Review on the Factors Influencing Air Pollution in Residential and Commercial Structure

“…Simultaneous measurement of 20 VOCs in both indoor and outdoor spaces revealed that for a majority of the compounds, the median levels were considerably higher than those in outdoor spaces. Later in 2017, assessment of the same sampling size (567 dwellings) in mainland France was conducted to observe the relationship between measured air pollutants concentration and perceived IAQ [64]. In 2018, another study was conducted by OQAI (mandated by the French government) to assess the IAQ in energy-efficient buildings, which included both newly built and retrofitted buildings, based on standard quantification methods and questionnaires [47].…”

Use of portable air purifiers in homes: Operating behaviour, effect on indoor PM2.5 and perceived indoor air quality

“…Langer et al [23] assessed the perception of air quality in homes in France and found that there was little correlation between occupants' perceived air quality and the measured parameters (including particulate matter). In the study, visitors to the homes did a better job of assessing air quality, but their perceptions were strongly correlated with the smoking habits of the occupants and the season in which they visited.…”

Indoor Air Quality Certification and Consumers’ Willingness: Taiwan’s Experience and Survey

“…At the same time, the surveys can be roughly divided into three types: measurement quality and comparative analysis [12,13], measurement as the main part and supplemented by some subjective questionnaire surveys [14], and pure public IAQ perception surveys [15,16]. Secondly, IAQ surveys around the world have also shown different characteristics in recent years: combining instrumental measurements and subjective questionnaires [17][18][19][20][21] and IAQ perception surveys for specific spaces [22,23]. It is worth mentioning that some research has emphasized public IAQ perception surveys and conducted comparative analyses [24].…”